Meet Balkrishna Doshi, the Pritzker Prize winner and humane architect

Harshavardhan Neotia, chairman of the Ambuja Neotia Group, recounts how he met Doshi and how the path-breaking architect continues to be an influence on his projects

I got in touch with B V Doshi in 1994 for some housing projects, but initially he did not show much interest. For one, there wasn’t any direct flight between Ahmedabad and Kolkata and he would have had to travel via Mumbai. I also think he had some reservations about how a commercial real estate developer like me would be able to understand his mind.
 
A few months after this initial setback, I learnt that he would be visiting Kolkata to attend an architectural event. I decided to meet him there — my heart was set on winning him over for the residential project I had planned. 

To break the ice, I invited him home for a meal with my family, which he consented to. It was during that meal, which went on for over two hours, that I told him about my own vision of housing and developing residential projects in the city. But it wasn’t from a business point of view. I was more like a disciple to his ideas of a humane approach towards construction, utility of space and bringing in harmony, both within and outside the building and nature. I also invited him to visit the project site. 
 

After a few months, I contacted him again and it was then that he finally consented. That is how Udayan, the Condoville, was designed. Later, he also worked on Upohar as well as Gyan Pravah in Varanasi. 

 
With my first love being real estate, I was always interested in architecture and had read a book on his works. I found his work in Aranya Low Cost Housing and Amdavad ni Gufa immersive and our interaction only increased my respect for him. He has had a huge impact on the way I conceptualise a project.
 
He gives a lot of importance to utilising space and its functionality. Not only is he focused on how best to ventilate and light up space, but he also brings in harmony between the brick-and-mortar construction and the natural surroundings. The way he designs housing projects, it seems as though he is aiming to weave the residents closer to one another, thereby creating a society that leads to closer human ties.